Nanotechnology in the field of Electronics

 

Ms Shwetha 
Assistant Professor
Department of Electronics 
NCMS

Introduction on nanotechnology

Nano is a very tiny range of design using structures that human eye cannot see with naked eyes. It is in the range of 1 to 100 nanometers. A nanometer is a billionth of the meter or about the few size of an atom.The commonly used nanomaterials for electronic equipment are the carbon nanotubes, the quantum dots, and the surfacecoatings. Nanotechnology provides many opportunities for the innovation and development of the country. Nanotechnology is used to create new display technologies such as OLED and quantum dot displays. These displays offer higher resolution, better color reproduction and lower power consumption.  The use of nanotechnology allows electronics to be faster, smaller and more portable. It increases the power of electronic devices improves the memory chips and helps to reduce the power consumption and the size of transistors used in ICs. The average people already encounter nanotechnology in a range of everyday product where as

•      Healthcare: To develop new drugs and treatment for disease.

•  Energy: To develop new ways to generate and store energy e.g.,solar cells made with nanoparticles convert sunlight into electricity.

•      Manufacturing: To develop new materials e.g., to create stronger and lighter materials.

•      Security: To develop new ways to protect people and property e.g.,create sensors that can detect threats.

Environmental remediation: To clean up pollution and restore damage environment e.g.,nanoparticles are used to break the pollutants into harmless substance.

Robots: Nano actuators are used in robots to move the joints and control the grippers.

Smartphones: Nano sensors are used in smartphones to detect motion, proximity, and light.

 Laptops: Nano sensors are used in laptops to detect temperature, pressure, and humidity.

Wearable’s: Nano sensors are used in wearable devices, such as fitness trackers and smart watches, to detect heart rate, blood oxygen level, and other physiological signals.

Medical devices: Nano sensors are used in medical devices, such as pacemakers and insulin pumps, to monitor patient health.

Environmental monitoring devices: Nano sensors are used in environmental monitoring devices to detect pollutants and other environmental hazards 

Applications of Nanotechnology

 Laser in communication: In optical fiber communication laser bandwidth is very high compared to the radio and microwave communication more channels can be transmitted simultaneously

 Laser in industry: It is used to blast holes in hard steel, can cut, drill, weld and remove metal from surface

 Laser in medical science: Argon and CO₂are used in treatment of liver and lungs and it is also used in eye treatment for removing blood vessels that formed on retina

 Laser in military: A laser beam can be bounced off a target such as enemy air plane, high energy laser are used to destroy enemy air crafts

Nano electrochemical system

Sensors and Actuators

A sensor is the device that can detect and sense the signals. The signals may be biomedical, optical, electrical, and mechanical. A sensor is a transducer that converts a measurement into a signal that carries information. The Nano sensor is used to detect the presence of nanomaterial in that size even smaller

Types of Nano sensors are:

•      Biosensors: These sensors detect biological molecules, such as DNA, proteins, or bacteria. They are used in medical diagnostics, environmental monitoring, and food safety.

•      Chemical sensors: These sensors detect chemicals, such as pollutants, explosives, or drugs. They are used in environmental monitoring, security, and healthcare.

•      Physical sensors: These sensors detect physical quantities, such as temperature, pressure, or force. They are used in a variety of applications, including manufacturing, transportation, and healthcare.

 Risk and Challenges of Nanotechnology

It also possesses some risk on human health and environment as well as for legal, ethical and social aspects, on rapid development of the production of material containing metal nanoparticles and metal oxides have potential risk to the environment for instance some nanomaterial’s may be toxic or harmful to living being also. Hence it is very important to raise public awareness the sources of exposure to nanoparticles should be highlighted, and should be clearly analyze the drawbacks and harmfulness of the technology before implementing to living beings.